Research Projects
Whittaker Report Review 2007
This report was compiled jointly by the Katharine Howard Foundation (KHF) and the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) and launched by the Minister for Justice, Mr Brian Lenihan on the 25th July 2007. The intention of the report is to review the implementation of the Whitaker report which was published in 1985. The overall intention with this project is to stimulate reflection and debate on the future of penal policy in Ireland.
KHF is pleased to have been associated with this review as it gives us a mechanism by which to encourage reflection on penal reform, a social issue of concern of the Foundation for a number of years. KHF’s focus is primarily on preventative and early intervention in relation to children and families that are disadvantaged and marginalised. Through this work it is obvious to KHF that the recidivism in Irish prisons will not be tackled without a radical shift of resources and a prioritising of support for a preventative approach to tackling social exclusion and poverty. The Foundation welcomes the growing interest in learning about and applying policies that offer alternatives to prison and hope that this report will assist in the endeavour of many organisations to promote different approaches to tackling crime and punishment.
This project required modest funding which KHF was happy to contribute for the most part, however a generous contribution was also received from the St Stephen’s Green Trust, to whom we are very grateful for their belief and support with this work.
Community Playgroup Research
Arising from the learning from the Community Playgroup Initiative, KHF saw the need for further research on the role of community playgroups in Ireland. KHF and the IPPA, The Early Childhood Organisation, formed a consortium of organisations in late 2004 and commissioned the Children’s Research Centre in Trinity College Dublin to undertake a research study.
The aim of the study was to identify the role of community playgroups in the early childhood care and education, community development, family support and social inclusion areas, and examine the factors which contribute to, or undermine their existence, and, through this, make recommendations for reconceptualising community playgroups in contemporary Ireland at a policy and practice level.
The report was launched at the IPPA conference 2007 and a summary of the report is available to download here.
Young Men on the Margins
Young Men on the Margins presents the direct voices of homeless men in Dublin.
It highlights how, from childhood onwards, negative economic and social experiences combined at family and community level to create a process where young men moved from living at home to being out-of-home. It draws attention to the absence of appropriate economic and social supports at crucial stages to prevent the drift into homelessness.
Men aged 18-30 tell us about their family relationships and family circumstances, economic deprivation, their experience of the education system, how they cope with homelessness, their experiences of drug-use and associated crime and their hopes to change their lives and integrate into society.
At a broader level, Young Men on the Margins draws together some available data on the experience of marginalisation among men and boys in contemporary Irish society. This includes an exploration of the consequences of social change for men. In particular, changing family structures, male educational participation and performance, the changing nature of work, and changing value systems are considered. This provides a wider context for the understanding of the experiences of homeless men interviewed in the study. The study is of interest to those concerned with improving the well-being and social inclusion of children, families and communities in Ireland. It is also of interest to those concerned with the relationship between gender and social policy. It is of particular relevance in light of Government’s policies such as the National Anti-Poverty Strategy, the National Children’s Strategy and the Youth Homelessness Strategy. This report will be complemented by another on the issue of suicide later in 2005.
Download “Young Men on the Margins” (
842KB)
Young Men on the Margins: Suicidal Behaviour amongst Young Men
This publication follows on from the first report in the series, ‘Young Men on the Margins’ (Cleary, Corbett, Galvin & Wall, 2004). The initial report outlined the extent to which men, particularly men from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, fail more in school, are more involved in crime, drugs or alcohol, are more vulnerable to homelessness and ultimately are at a higher risk of suicide, than the rest of society.
This second report explores the issue of male suicide in more detail. It takes a qualitative approach, and is based on a series of interviews with fifteen men who were admitted to a large teaching hospital having attempted suicide.
The report summarises the literature in relation to male suicide and presents the findings from an exploratory study of men who engaged in suicidal behaviour. It is clear from the stories told in this report that crisis intervention services, if they exist, are either inaccessible or are not utilised by young men. There appears to be an absence of a professional integrated response from the hospital services, mental health services and community services.
This study is of interest to those concerned with public policy responses to suicide amongst young men in Ireland. It is of particular relevance, given the recent Government development of Reach Out - A National Strategy for Action on Suicide Prevention, which sets out a range of actions to be taken by various State and non-governmental agencies over the next ten years.
Download “Young Men on the Margins:Suicidal Behaviour Amongst Young Men ” ( 435KB)
For a hard copy of this publication, please contact us.
Social Housing in Ireland
This research study, published in 1999, explored the living conditions and quality of life in seven urban local authority estates in Ireland. The research team paid particular attention to the perspective of the residents in each estate – their views about what made their neighbourhoods good or bad places to live and what they had to say about their relationships with local service agencies and local authorities in particular.
The study’s findings are an invaluable addition to our knowledge about what makes local authority housing succeed or fail, and on this basis contains important lessons for housing policy and practice.
Social Housing in Ireland was supported by Area Development Management Ltd (ADM) and the Combat Poverty Agency in conjunction with the Katharine Howard Foundation.
Social Housing in Ireland can be purchased from Oak Tree Press